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Yes, in the woods.

Staff Member

Posted by Mike Florio on May 29, 2014, 12:55 AM EDTAP
It took more than a week, but the new deal signed on The View by Bears receiver Brandon Marshall finally is available to be fully scrutinized. And, as usual, the numbers are originally reported were a little better than the reality.
Per a source with knowledge of the contract, Marshall gets $14.8 million fully guaranteed at signing, via a $7.5 million signing bonus and a fully-guaranteed $7.3 million base salary for 2014. His $7.5 million base salary for 2015 is guaranteed for injury only until the third day of the 2015 league year, at which time it becomes fully guaranteed.Initial reports of the value had pegged the guarantee at $22.3 million, glossing over (as initial reports usually do) the distinction between guaranteed and fully-guaranteed money.
In 2016, Marshall has a non-guaranteed base salary of $7.9 million. In 2017, the final year of the contract, the base salary moves to $8.3 million.
He also has workout bonuses of $200,000 each year, and a $700,000 escalator tied to winning the Super Bowl. The escalator pushes the four-year deal from a base value of $39.3 million to a maximum package of $40 million.
The cap numbers are $9.375 million in 2014, $9.575 million in 2015, $9.975 million in 2016, and $10.375 million in 2017. If, for whatever reason, the Bears decide to dump Marshall before the final $7.5 million in guaranteed money becomes fully guaranteed, he will have received $15 million for one season.
They can also move on after the 2015 or 2016 season, with a relatively small cap consequence.
So despite the four-year, $40 million figure trumpeted by Marshall, it’s a year-to-year arrangement for Marshall and the Bears. For most teams and players, that’s how the NFL currently works.

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Coordinator

SuperFanDBS Writer

I don't recall ever reading that the entire deal was guaranteed and the structure makes that $22.3 mil about as fully guaranteed as you can make it. Does anyone seriously believe his 2014 production would drop so low that they'd release him before his 2015 salary becomes guaranteed too? Not likely and also not a reason why Marshall would even balk at that. If he's hurt and can't play he gets it anyway.

Not guaranteeing his salary for 2016 and 2017 is just common sense. Few if any NFL teams will do that any longer with players his age and for those amounts. It's a good deal for all concerned. Fair to both parties and furthermore Marshall is thrilled with it and so are the Bears so while this news is informative so is today's weather report but even that means more to me than the minute details of Marshall's extension. Actually he'll probably get another one after this one if he stays healthy.

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